Tape packages



May 13, 1958 Filed March 11, 1957 R. M. DUNNING TAPE PACKAGES 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR BY M May l3, 1958 R. M. DUNNING 2,834,457

TAPE PACKAGES 7 Filed March 11, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 A A X\ fi Z74 55 60 INVENTOR" 6 BY fimzz United States Patent TAPE PACKAGES Robert M. Dunning, St. Paul, Minn, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minn., a corporation of Delaware Application March 11, 1957, Serial No. 645,209

Claims. (Cl. 206-52) This invention relates to an improvement in tape pack- 3 ages and deals particularly with a package for supporting a roll of tape so that the tape may be withdrawn from the roll while the roll is contained within the package.

During recent years it has become popular to contain rolls of tape such as masking tape and the like in tubular enclosing sleeves having open ends. The tape may be withdrawn from the roll through the end of the sleeve while the roll remains confined within the sleeve. In order to support the roll within the sleeve, flaps have been cut from opposite sides of the sleeve and folded inwardly into the core of the tape roll. These flaps form a rectangular boxlike support about which the tape roll may rotate. One of the difl'iculties with this arrangement lies in the fact that it is not always simple to lock the flaps in proper relation. If one or more of the flaps moves out of place, the support is destroyed and a pull upon the tape dislodges the roll. Furthermore, the flaps form a rectangular support so that the roll is supported firmly by the corners of the structure. As an added disadvantage, two flaps must be folded inwardly from each side of the carton thus requiring time and effort to complete the package after the tape roll has been inserted thereinto.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a tape roll support which avoids certain of the ditficulties experienced with the previous constructions. A support is provided having arcuate outer edges which substantially fit the curvature of the inner surface of the roll core. Thus a bearing surface is provided against which a core of the roll may engage thus providing a better support for the tape. The present arrangement also has the advantage of being engageable with the core of the tape roll by merely applying pressure against the support to force a portion of the support into the roll of tape.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the fact that when a pull is exerted upon the tape tending to unroll the tape from the core, a tendency is created to tighten the connection between the tape core and the carton. In pressing the roll support from the wall of the sleeve, the portion of the support which actually engages the core of the roll twists or rotates down into place. Accordingly when a pull is exerted upon the tape tending to wind'the core in one direction, the frictional engagement between the tape core and the support tends to thread the tape roll support more deeply into the core thus providing a better engagement between the core and the support when such pull is occurring.

A feature of the present invention resides in the fact that if the tape is relatively wide, a similar tape roll support may be provided in both of two opposite walls of the carton, these supports being pressed together into contacting relation. In the preferred form of construction, the two supports are then stapled or adhered together so as to form a solid unitary construction forming a permanent rotatable support for the tape roll.

A further feature of the present invention resides in provision of a tape roll support which includes a supported body having arcuate outer edges designed to en- 7 2,834,157 Patented May 13, 1958 gage angularly spaced areas on the inner surface of the roll core. This body is connected to a corresponding panel of the sleeve by short supporting straps, the full lines of the connecting straps extending in a generally radial direction from the axis of the core. With this arrangement, the body of the support rotates in an angular direction about the axis of the core as it is pressed inwardly, the body of the support extending in generally parallel relation to the wall of the sleeve from which it is pressed.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the fact that if the tape being packaged is relatively narrow, the support may be pressed inwardly from one wall only of the sleeve, the body of the support then being pressed against the opposite wall of the sleeve and preferably secured thereto. In such an arrangement, the edges of the supporting straps as well as the marginal edge of the body of the support serve as a bearing for the tape roll.

A further feature of the present-invention resides in the provision of a support for a roll of tape or the like which includes a support body which is cut from the body of a sleeve or carton wall and which is pressed from this wall so as to extend in substantially parallel relation thereto. As a result of this arrangement, no extra paperboard is provided to form a suppoit for the tape roll. The portion of the sleeve or carton which is pressed inwardly to form the support is cut from the part of carton which overlies the core of the roll and accordingly the surface of the product is not exposed by the formation of the roll support.

These and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be more clearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claims.

In the drawings forming a part of the specification,

Fig. l is a perspective view of a tape package showing the construction thereof.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the carton illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view through the tape roll package, the position of the section being indicated by the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view of the carton blank from which the sleeve is formed.

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view of the carton blank of a modified form of construction of tape roll support.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view through the completed carton shown in Fig. 5.

While the present construction is designed for numerous uses, in the particular embodiment illustrated, the structure comprises a sleeve indicated in general by the letter A which is designed to support a roll of tape which is indicated in general by the letter B. The tape roll B is shown as including a hollow cylindrical core 10 having a strip of tape 11 wound thereupon. The roll of tape is designed to rotate between top and bottom panels of the sleeve and the arrangement is such that the tape may be pulled from the roll while the roll is supported within the sleeve. Obviously, the ends of the sleeve may be closed by closure panels provided with tuck flaps or the like, but in the simple arrangement illustrated the ends of the sleeve are open.

As is best illustrated in Fig. 4 of the drawings, the tape sleeve includes a bottom panel 10 which is foldably connected on the line of fold 11 to a side wall panel 12. Side wall panel 12 is foldably connected along a fold line 13 to the top wall panel 14. The top wall panel 14 is in turn connected along a hinge line 15 to a second side wall panel 16. A glue flap 17 is connected to the bottom panel ll) along a line of fold 19 and this glue flap is normally adhered in surface contact with the wall panel 16.

The particular description of the panels is merely rela- 3 tive as the package may rest on any of its panels or upon an end. All of the fold lines 11, 13, 15, and 19 are in parallel relation.

The bottom panel is provided with a support 20' which is cut from the body of the panel 10 by means of a series of cut lines. The support 20 is confined within a circular outline indicated by the broken line 21. The radius of curvature of the circular line 21 is substantially identical with the radius of the inner surface of the tape r011 core 10 so as to extend into this core and to form a support therefor.

The support 20 includes a series 'of angularly spaced projections, the particular structure illustrated having four such projections 22, 23, 24, and 25. The ends 26 of the various projections extend along the circular line 2-1 in preferred form so that the ends of the projections form an engagement with the tape roll core 10 when the support is in use. Alternated between the outward projections 22, 23, 24, and I provide inward projections 27, 29, 30, and 31 which are shown as being generally triangular in outline. The inward projection 27 is foldably connected along a fold line 32 to a strap 33, the end of which is foldably connected along a fold line 34 to the outward 7 projection 22. The inward projection 29 is foldably connected along a fold line 35 to a strap 36, the other edge of which is foldably connected along a fold line '37 to the outward projection 23.

In a similar manner, the inward projection 30 is foldably connected along a fold line 39 to a strap 40, the end of which is foldably connected along a fold line 41 to the outward projection 24. The inward projection 31 is foldably connected along a fold line 42 to a strap 43, the opposite end of which is connected along a fold line 44 to the outward projection 25. The edges of the various straps are cut from the body of the panel 10 and from the body of the support 20 by cut lines, the outer cut lines comprising extensions of the arcuate cut lines 26 and the inner edges being separated from the body of the support 20 by cut lines 45 which also define the inner edges of the inward projections 27, 29, 3d, and 31'.

When the support 26 overlies the end of the tape roll core 10, and an inward pressure is exerted against this support, the various connecting straps 33, 36, 4t) and 43 fold to permit the support to enter the core 10, the various'straps being folded until they areja't almost right angles to the inward and outward projections which they connect. In view of the fact that the various straps are of equal length, the body of the support remains parallel to the surface of the panel 16' from which it is cut. As the support extends inwardly into the'core 1'0, the body of the support tu'fists so that the edges of the inner and outer projections which are connected bygthe straps are more or less vertically aligned.

The top panel of 14 is provided With a similar support 46 whichisfco'nfined within a circular area indicated by the "dotted line '47, the two; circular areas being on a common axis when the panels 10 and 14'are in parallel relation. Preferably, the inward projections on the panel 14 and the outward projections on the support 46 are re versed from the arrangement illustrated in panel 10 so that their supports will twist in the same direction when folded out of the plane of the panels in which they are formed. As the two supports are substantially identical, it is believed only necessary to state that the support ineludes outward projections 49 which are provided with outer arcuate ends 50 which extend along the circular line 47. Alternate inward projections of 51 are provided projecting into the circular area from the outer periphery thereof in alternate relation to the outward projections 49. Straps 52 are foldably connected to the support of 46 along fo'l'd lines '53 while the other ends of the straps are foldably connected to the inward projections 51 along fold lines 54. These straps are all'of 'sir'nilar length so that as the support 46 is folded out of the plane of the panel 14, the support extends parallel to the panel 14.

In actual practice, some distortion of the paperboard takes place at the fold lines. If the various fold lines which connect the straps to 'the inward and outward projections are all extending in a radial direction, one fold line may extend into a position directly above the other, but the inner edge of each strap is slightly shorter than the outer edge so that the various outward projections bend slightly out of the plane of the center portion of the support. On the other hand, if the fold lines on opposite sides of each strap are parallel, and are on opposite sides of a radius from the center of curvature, the strap is of equal length throughout its width, but one fold line cannot move directly above the other. Accordingly I prefer to provide a compromise between radially .xtcnding fold lines and parallel fold lines and to have these fold lines extend in a generally radial direction and in a generally parallel direction, but in directions which are actually not exactly radial or exactly parallel. The paperboard is sufitciently flexible to take care or any slight discrepancies when the supports are folded from the planes of the panels in which they are formed.

If desired, a metal strip such as 48 having a serrated edge 58 may be mounted upon an end of the panel 12 'to provide a means of cutting the tape. Such an arrangement is, of course, not novel and is optional.

In operation, the sleeves A are glued into tubular form and shipped and stored in a flat state. When they are to be used, they are expanded into their tubular form with the side and end walls in a generally right angular relation, and a roll of tape Bis inserted so that the core 10 is coaxial with the circular areas of 21 and 47 on the opposite panels 10 and 14. Inward pressure is then applied to both of the supports 20 and 46, forcing these supports into the core 10'. Usually each support is designed to extend on a plane substantially midway between the ends of the core so that the two supports2'0 and 46 are in surface contact. Also in the preferred form, the supports 20 and 46 are adhered in surface contact by means of a spot of adhesive or a piece of double sided adhesive placed between the supports 20 and 46 before they are pressed together. Alternatively, these two supports may be stapled or otherwise secured together.

The tape roll B is arranged in such a manner thatwhen the tape 11' is pulled from the roll, the core rotates around the two supports. The direction of rotation 1s such as to tend to draw the two supports into firmer-contact. Due to the fact that the supports twist as they ener the core, friction against the outer surfaces of the supports in one direction tends to twist the supports more deeply into the core while friction in the opposite direction tends to swing the supports toward the plane of the panels from which they are cut. By having the tape mounted upon the supports so that the dispensing of the tape will tend to more firmly engage the two supports, an effective tape support is provided. When mounted in this way, the supports function effectively even without any means securing the two supports in contacting relation.

In Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings I disclose a modified form of construction which may be employed for rolls of somewhat narrower tape. This carton C is designed to hold a roll D of tape which may be substantially narrower than the tape on roll B.

The carton C includes a bottom panel 55 which is foldably connected on fold line 56 to a side wallfpanel 57. The side wall panel is foldably connected along a line of fold 59 to a top panel 60. The top panel 60 is in turn connected along the fold line 61 to a second side wall panel 62. A gluefiap 63 is foldably connected to the bottom panel 55 along a fold line 64 and this glue fi'ap 63 is normally adhered in surface contact with side "wall panel 62. The fold lines 56, 59, 61 and 64 are preferably parallel.

A taperoll support '65 is cut from the bottom panel 55'an'd is normally confined within a circular area which 7 is defined by the broken line '66. The support 65 'includes a series of angularly spaced projections 67 which have curved outer extremities 69 which lie upon the broken line 66. Intermediate the outward projections 67 I provide inward projections 70 which are alternated with the outward projections 67 and which remain in the plane of the bottom panel 55. Each inward projection 70 is connected by a strap 71 to a corresponding outward projection 67. Fold lines 72 which extend in a generally radial direction connect the inward projections 70 with the straps 71. The other end of each strap 71 is connected to a corresponding outward projection 67 along a fold line 73. As the support 65 is of approximately the same outside diameter as the inside of the core 74 of the tape roll D the support may extend down into the core when the carton is filled.

During the filling operation, the carton C is folded into its rectangular tubular shape and the tape roll D is inserted thereinto until the core 74 thereof registers with the outer curved edges 69 of the outward projections 67. The support 65 may then be pressed down or inwardly toward the panel 60. The straps 71 are preferably of sufficient length so that the support 65 may rest in surface contact to the panel 60 when the support is fully depressed. The support 65 may be adhered or stapled to the panel 60 to provide a support about which the tape roll D may be rotated.

As in the previously described construction, the structure in question is formed by a series of arcuate cut lines which extend along the imaginary broken line 66 from the end of each inward projection 70 which is defined by a fold line 72 to a point substantially spaced from the fold line 73 defining one edge of each outer projection 67. From this point, cut lines 76 extend inwardly, defining the inner edge of each inward projection 70, and the inner edge of each strap 71. These cut lines 76 terminate at the inner ends of the fold lines 73. Obviously, the shape of these cut lines may be varied to some extent without in any way changing the operation of the structure.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described the principles of construction and operation of my tape roll package, and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that obvious changes may be made within the scope of the following claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

l. A holder for a member having a hollow generally cylindrical core, the holder including a panel of paperboard, a support cut from said panel and including a series of angularly spaced members having substantially arcuate outer surfaces having a substantially common center, and a series of straps connecting said angularly spaced members to said panel, and fold lines connecting said straps to said panel and to said angularly spaced members and extending in a generally radial direction from the center of curvature.

2. A holder for a member having a hollow generally cylindrical core, the holder including a panel of paperboard, a support cut from a circular area of said panel of substantially equal radius to that of the core to be supported, said support including a series of angularly spaced projections having outer arcuate edges lying on the periphery of said circular area, and a generally radially extending connecting strap connecting each projection to the surface of said panel, said straps being of substantially equal length to hold said support in a plane substantially parallel to said panel.

3. A holder in combination with a member having a hollow generally cylindrical core, the holder including a panel of paperboard, a support cut from the body thereof and including angularly spaced projections having outer arcuate ends in contact with the inner wall of said core, said projections being substantially parallel to said panel, and generally radially extending straps connecting each projection of said support to said panel, said panel overlying an end of said core and said support being within said core.

4. The structure of claim 3 and in which the straps include outer edges extending along the inner surface of said core.

5. A holder for use in combination with a member having a generally cylindrical hollow core, the holder including a panel of paperboard overlying an end of the core, and a support cut from a circular area of the panel of substantially equal diameter to that of the inner core surface the support including angularly spaced outward projections having end portions in contact with the inner surface of the core, inward projections on said panel extending into said circular area from the periphery thereof, and straps hinged to said outward projections of said support and said inward projections on said panel.

6. The structure of claim 5 and in which the straps extend in a general radial direction.

7. The structure of claim 5 and in which the outer edges of the straps extend along the inner surface of the core.

8. The structure of claim 5 and in which the holder includes a second panel overlying the end of the core opposite the first named panel, and in which said support is secured to a portionof said second panel.

9. A holder for use in combination with a member having a hollow generally cylindrical core, the holder including a pair of panels of paperboard overlying opposite ends of the core, a support cut from the body of each panel and supported within said core on planes substantially parallel to said panels, each support including a series of outward projections having their outer ends engaging the inner surface of said core, said panels having inwardly extending projections overlying the hollow core ends, and straps connecting each outward projection to a corresponding inward projection of a corresponding panel.

10. The structure of claim 9 and including means securing said supports substantially in surface contact.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

